The World Through My Eyes

Aaliyah, 28

“My coat is thrifted from Beacon’s Closet, top from Diesel, bottoms are Uniqlo sweats, boots thrifted from Buffalo Exchange, and bag is Jacquemus. My style philosophy is to be as fluid and experimental as possible.”

Today In History

Gertrude “Ma” Rainey was born in Columbus, GA on this date April 26, 1886. Rainey was an influential blues singer and early blues recording artist.

Dubbed the “Mother of the Blues”, ‘Ma’ Rainey bridged earlier vaudeville and the authentic expression of southern blues, influencing a generation of blues singers.

‘Ma Rainey's Black Bottom’ is a 1982 play by Pulitzer Prize winner August Wilson-which chronicles Ma Rainey and the 20th-century African-American experience. The play is set in a recording studio in 1920s Chicago, and deals with issues of race, art, religion, and the historic exploitation of Black recording artists by white producers.

The play has been converted into a film, “Ma Rainey's Black Bottom” directed by George C. Wolfe and written by Ruben Santiago-Hudson.

The film stars Viola Davis, Chadwick Boseman, Glynn Turman, Colman Domingo, and Michael Potts. It’s streaming now on Netflix.